How to determine the ripeness of a watermelon in the garden: TOP methods, tips with photos and videos

Watermelon is loved for its sweetness, for the fact that this berry gets rid of thirst, removes toxic substances from the body. How to determine the ripeness of a watermelon in the garden is of interest to summer residents who planted this crop for the first time, because the unripe fruit is tasteless.

Although its pulp is more than 90% water, it contains vitamins, trace elements such as phosphorus, magnesium, calcium. Folic acid present in watermelon strengthens the immune system, lycopene prevents cell regeneration, tocopherol protects them from aging. Riboflavin promotes the conversion of carbohydrates into energy.

How to tell if a watermelon is ripe - highlights

You can find out if a striped berry is ripe by paying attention to certain signs. The fruits of some varieties of gourds reach a weight of 20 kilograms, but if they stop growing, you can pick a watermelon after 20 days.

Worth paying attention to:

• looks like a crust;
• on the side spot color;
• for the presence of sound.

When the berry ripens, the matte skin begins to shine, the stripes become clear. Do not cut a cube from a fruit in the garden to check its ripeness - the product will rot in a few days.

The tail of watermelons dries up when the weather is dry and hot, and the plant experiences a lack of moisture, so its appearance does not depend on whether the berry is green or ripe.

If the tendril, which is located in the same axil of the leaf with the tail, began to dry, the striped fruit can already be cut. The diameter of the watermelon depends on the variety. Only gardeners can determine the ripeness, that they have been growing it for a long time.

By appearance of the crust

To find out if the fruit is ripe, if it has accumulated sweetness, you need to carefully examine its peel. When the berry stops getting moisture from the plant, the rind becomes hard. In a ripe watermelon, dents and cracks are not felt on it, the skin is not covered with a matte purine coating. The top layer of the fetus can be easily removed with a fingernail.

On a light background of the crust, almost black stripes clearly appear. When the berry ripens, the synthesis of chlorophyll stops, giving a green tint to the watermelon peel.

When a gourd grows in warmth and in the sun, when ripe, its fruits acquire a contrasting color, shine appears, turns yellow or turns orange on the side. A ripe berry has a slightly elongated shape.

On a dry stem

Before you cut a watermelon, you need to carefully examine its tail. If it is dry, then, most likely, the berry has rotted or overripe. A product with a green stalk is not suitable for consumption. For such a watermelon to ripen, it needs at least 2 weeks to grow in the garden.

By sound

In an unripe berry, not only is there no sweetness, but also contains harmful substances, it can be easily poisoned. Although tomatoes and melons, which also belong to gourds, ripen at home, some gardeners believe that it is better to pick a watermelon earlier, but their opinion is not confirmed. You can check the ripeness of the fruit in another way. The product is suitable for use when a slight crack occurs when squeezed, and when tapped, it is not a deaf, but a sonorous sound.

What should be the size and color of the earth spot

Watermelon, which is grown in the garden, does not turn on its own, so it constantly lies, touching the same side. A stain appears in this place. In a ripe fruit, it is distinguished by an orange or yellow tint. If this “cheek” occupies a significant surface, the size exceeds 10 centimeters, it has an uneven color or a pale color, it is better to wait with the harvest.When the berry ripens, the entire skin is covered with small spots that are much lighter than it is.

Optimal weight

Breeders have bred different varieties of watermelons that are more adapted to a particular area, differ in size and weight, and ripen at different times. Skorik first appears on the shelves of retail outlets. There are no stripes on the surface of the fruit, the peel has a dark green color. The mass of ripe watermelons rarely reaches 7 kilograms.

Photon is maturing fast. The skin of this berry is lighter, painted with stripes.

Crimson Gloria variety is characterized by:

• excellent transportability;
• very thick crust;
• huge size.

One such fruit weighs 15-17 kilograms. The mass of Kherson watermelons is somewhat less. You can recognize them by light stripes, thin skin, elongated shape.

Hybrid variety Kholodok, although it ripens by the end of August, is valued for not spoiling for a long time, retaining its characteristics.

Astrakhan watermelon is different:

• smooth surface;
• the presence of dark bands;
• bright green skinned.

A sweet berry of this variety weighs up to 10 kilograms, is not damaged during transportation. This hybrid was bred at the end of the last century by Russian breeders.

What should be the color and texture of the pulp

It is not recommended to eat watermelons if the concentration of nitrates in them exceeds the norm. Those gardeners who grow melons for their families, and not for sale, like farmers, do not stuff the fruits with harmful substances so that they ripen faster. When buying watermelons in the market, you need to learn some rules.

About the presence of a large amount of nitrates says:

• uneven flesh color;
• presence of cracks and yellowish fibers in the section;
• unequal bone color.

If a juicy piece of fruit is placed in a glass of water and the solution becomes cloudy, it can be safely purchased for consumption; it is better to refuse watermelon if the liquid has acquired a reddish tint.

To determine if a berry is ripe, it is not necessary to taste the fruit, just look closely at the pulp.

If it has a pink tint, a porous structure, it means that the fruit has already ripened, acquired sugar content. The red color of the insides of a watermelon indicates that there are a lot of nitrates in the berry or it is overripe, and such a product is not suitable for consumption by either children or adults.

How not to determine ripeness

Some of the methods used to find out if it is possible to cut a watermelon from a garden bed are not always effective. It is impossible to accurately determine whether the fruit has ripened by the average ripening period of the variety, because gourds always react to the weather. If the days are cool, it rains, the harvest time is delayed, and it is not certain that the fruits will acquire sweetness.

The development of gourds is influenced by the characteristics of the soil on which it grows.

You can't say for sure that a watermelon is ripe if its tail is dry. This often happens in extreme heat, in the absence of moisture in the ground. To understand what kind of sound occurs when knocking, whether crackling appears when pressing on the peel, you need to hear very well. It is difficult to determine its ripeness by the weight and diameter of the fruit. Such parameters rarely correspond to annotations and specially designed tables.

If the gardener has been growing the same variety of sweet berries for a long time - focusing on its size, he can start harvesting. Such methods give the correct result only in half of the cases. Many people say that “girls” watermelons with a dense large spot are more delicious, but “boys”, with a good choice, also please with sweetness and juiciness.

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